Method and apparatus for offering and providing consolation prizes

ABSTRACT

A system and method for providing consolation prizes base upon player gaming losses is described. Gaming device players are awarded consolation prizes based upon the amount of money they lose in a gambling session. The prizes a player may be offered may be determined by calculating the total amount a player put into a gaming device (the “coin-in” amount) less the total amount he receives from the device (the “coin-out” amount) during a gambling session. In some embodiments, third-party merchants provide prizes that both represent value to players and allow the merchants to establish a relationship with new customers. For example, a consolation prize may include a free three-month trial subscription to a magazine or to a cable television service. In some embodiments, the consolation prizes may be rewarded on a tiered basis in proportion to the amount of loss the player has sustained. In some embodiments, a voucher with a retail value equal to the player&#39;s entire loss amount may be provided as a consolation prize

RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims priority to commonly-owned, co-pendingU.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/297,970, filed Jun. 13, 2001,entitled “A METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR OFFERING CONSOLATION PRIZES BASEDON A PLAYER'S LOSS AMOUNT” which is incorporated herein by reference inits entirety for all purposes.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The present invention relates to methods and apparatuses foroffering and providing consolation prizes. More specifically, thepresent invention relates to determining an appropriate consolationprize as well as when and to whom it may be desirable to offer it.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] Despite the fact that many players win sizable jackpots atcasinos or in other gaming settings, many more would-be players arereluctant to play for fear of losing. Arguably, a fear of losing or afear of receiving nothing in return for money wagered, is the mostsignificant dissatisfaction or disappointment players experience at acasino. As a result, many prospective players avoid gambling altogether.

[0004] One way that casinos reward a player (who has either won or lost)is through “Casino Complimentary Programs.” These programs, also knownas “comps,” are designed to provide a player with complimentary rewardsbased on the amount of money that a player has wagered or is expected towager at a casino. For example, a player may accumulate thirty-five comppoints as a result of slot machine play and subsequently apply thosepoints towards the price of a buffet for a free meal. In addition, comppoints may also be associated with a particular cash value.

[0005] There are, however, significant disadvantages to comp programs.One disadvantage is that comp points do not adequately provide a playerwith compensation in the event that he has lost a substantial amount ofmoney in a short period of time. For example, if a player has lost$500.00 at a slot machine in two hours, he may not have accumulatedsufficient comp points to receive even a low value comp and will mostlikely leave the casino frustrated and angry. Conversely, if a playerhas won $500 at a slot machine, the amount of comp points that he hasearned will seem meaningless when compared to the emotional high thathis winning $500.00 has created. In short, because a player must wagerrelatively large amounts of money in order to obtain a meaningful comp,the player may rarely make the effort to win the prizes that areavailable to him via a comp program. The result is that the player willleave the casino feeling empty and frustrated and the casino will losevaluable gaming revenue.

[0006] Another disadvantage of the current comp system is that a playercan rarely accumulate the number of comp points that he needs to win aprize in one gambling session. Rather, a player must accumulate comppoints over a long period of time. As a result, the player who has lostall of his money will usually leave the casino with nothing but badmemories. Furthermore, because the player has left the casino emptyhanded, he may associate “unlucky” feelings with the casino and may notwant to return to that casino. Thus, a need exists for an improvedsystem that does not have the above drawbacks of existing systems suchas comp programs.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007]FIG. 1A is a block diagram illustrating an example systemaccording to some embodiments of the present invention.

[0008]FIG. 1B is a block diagram illustrating an example systemaccording to some alternative embodiments of the present invention.

[0009]FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a controller102 as depicted in FIGS. 1A and 1B according to some embodiments of thepresent invention.

[0010]FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a gamingdevice 104 as depicted in FIGS. 1A and 1B according to some embodimentsof the present invention.

[0011]FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a redemptionterminal 108 as depicted in FIGS. 1A and 1B according to someembodiments of the present invention.

[0012]FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a third-partymerchant terminal 106 as depicted in FIGS. 1A and 1B according to someembodiments of the present invention.

[0013]FIG. 6 is a table illustrating an example data structure of anexample player database 208 as depicted in FIG. 2 for use in someembodiments of the present invention.

[0014]FIG. 7 is a table illustrating an example data structure of anexample of offer database 210 as depicted in FIG. 2 for use in someembodiments of the present invention.

[0015]FIG. 8 is a table illustrating an example data structure of anexample third-party merchant database 212 as depicted in FIG. 2 for usein some embodiments of the present invention.

[0016]FIG. 9 is a table illustrating an example data structure of anexample transaction database 214 as depicted in FIG. 2 for use in someembodiments of the present invention.

[0017]FIG. 10 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process foroffering and providing consolation prizes according to and for use insome embodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] The disclosed invention solves the above and other drawbacks ofthe prior art by providing a system for awarding consolation prizesbased upon gambling losses, and other factors, as opposed to awardingcomps based upon wager amounts.

[0019] According to some embodiments of the present invention, gamingdevice players are awarded consolation prizes based upon the amount ofmoney they lose in a gambling session. In other words, the prizes aplayer may be offered may be determined by calculating the total amounta player put into a gaming device (the “coin-in” amount) less the totalamount he receives from the device (the “coin-out” amount) during agambling session. In some embodiments, third-party merchants provideprizes that both represent value to players and allow the merchants toestablish a relationship with new customers. For example, a consolationprize may include a free three-month trial subscription to a magazine orto a cable television service. In some embodiments, the consolationprizes may be rewarded on a tiered basis in proportion to the amount ofloss the player has sustained.

[0020] In some embodiments, a third-party merchant may be able to fund aconsolation prize that completely eliminates a player's losses. Forexample, a telephone service provider may be willing to pay $50.00 to acasino in exchange for a new customer. In some embodiments, a gamingdevice may ask a player who finishes a losing gaming session if he wouldlike his money back. The gaming device may offer the player the $42.00the player lost in exchange for signing up for the telephone serviceprovider's service plan. The casino makes $8.00 on top of their profitsfrom the player's gaming, the player gets his $42.00 refunded, and thetelephone company gets a customer for their customer acquisition fee.

[0021] The effect of providing a consolation prize based upon losses maybe very different than a comp system where comps are provided based uponan amount wagered. Consolation prizes may provide a salve to a playersuffering disappointment over a loss while a comp system is insensitiveto whether a player wins or loses, it merely rewards more play. Thus,Applicants have recognized that a need exists for efficient and costeffective systems and methods that allow casinos and other entertainmentproviders to provide players with means to directly mitigate playerlosses and minimize player frustration. In some embodiments, the presentinvention may be used to supplement existing comp systems and thus,reduce the drawbacks and negative effects of existing systems.

[0022] The present invention may allow casinos to acquire new customers.A casino may attract more players by guaranteeing that a player will winsomething every time he plays a casino game. Players' fear of losing ortheir fear of not receiving anything in return for their money may beassuaged and ultimately eliminated. Further, the present invention mayincrease a casino's customer retention. A casino employing the presentinvention may encourage its current players to play for longer periodsof time. Players who have yet to reach a certain consolation prizethreshold may extend their playing time despite potentially increasinglosses. Casinos employing the present invention may also realizeincreased gaming revenue. Players who would ordinarily quit playingafter reaching a certain losing point may continue to play with thehopes of earning a better, higher-tier consolation prize.

[0023] Beyond reducing players' fear of loss by eliminating playersleaving casinos empty handed and feeling rejected, depressed, andfrustrated, the present invention may increase player's enjoyment ofgaming. With the present invention players may be less inclined to worryabout whether they win or lose because both winning and losing havepositive, emotionally re-affirming effects. Further, the presentinvention may allow players to enjoy playing for longer periods of timeas they try to earn their desired consolation prize. The presentinvention may be used to eliminate the possibility of any player fromhaving a completely losing experience. Third-party merchants may alsobenefit from the present invention in that players who receive anintroductory sample of a product or service as a consolation prize maybe inclined to continue their use of the merchants' product or service.This may result in a low cost of customer acquisition for participatingthird-party merchants.

[0024] With these and other advantages and features of the inventionthat will become hereinafter apparent, the nature of the invention maybe more clearly understood by reference to the following detaileddescription of the invention, the appended claims and to the severaldrawings included herein.

[0025] In the following description, reference is made to theaccompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which is shown byway of illustration, specific embodiments in which the invention may bepracticed. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail toenable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, and it is tobe understood that other embodiments may be utilized and thatstructural, logical, software, and electrical changes may be madewithout departing from the scope of the present invention. The followingdescription is, therefore, not to be taken in a limited sense, and thescope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims.

A. Terms

[0026] Throughout the description that follows and unless otherwisespecified, the following terms may include the meanings provided in thissection. These terms and illustrative meanings are provided to clarifythe language selected to describe embodiments of the invention both inthe specification and in the appended claims.

[0027] The terms “products,” “goods,” “merchandise,” and “services”shall be synonymous and may refer to anything licensed, leased, sold,available for sale, available for lease, available for licensing, and/oroffered or presented for sale, lease, or licensing including packages ofproducts, subscriptions to products, contracts, information, services,and intangibles.

[0028] The term “merchant” may refer to an entity who may offer to sell,lease, and/or license one or more products to a consumer (for theconsumer or on behalf of another) or to other merchants. For example,merchants may include sales channels, individuals, companies,manufacturers, distributors, direct sellers, re-sellers, and/orretailers. Merchants may transact out of buildings including stores,outlets, malls and warehouses, and/or they may transact via any numberof additional methods including mail order catalogs, vending machines,online web sites, and/or via telephone marketing. Note that a produceror manufacturer may choose not to sell to customers directly and in sucha case, a retailer may serve as the manufacture's or producer's saleschannel.

[0029] The term “user device” may refer to any device owned or used by aconsumer capable of accessing and/or displaying online and/or offlinecontent. Such devices may include gaming devices, personal computers,personal digital assistants, point-of-sale terminals, point of displayterminals, kiosks, telephones, cellular phones, automated tellermachines (ATM), etc.

[0030] The term “gaming device” may refer to any gaming machine,including slot machines, video poker machines, video bingo machines,video keno machines, video blackjack machines, video lottery terminal,arcade games, game consoles, personal computers logged into onlinegaming sites, etc.. Gaming devices may or may not be owned by a casinoand/or may or may not exist within a casino.

[0031] The term “controller” may refer to a device that may be incommunication with gaming devices, third-party servers/terminals, and/ora plurality of user devices or other network nodes. A controller may becapable of executing software and relaying communications and/orinstructions and data to and from each type of network node.

[0032] The term “input device” may refer to a device that is used toreceive an input. An input device may communicate with or be part ofanother device (e.g. a user device, a third-party server, a controller,etc.). Some examples of input devices include: a bar-code scanner, amagnetic stripe reader, a computer keyboard, a point-of-sale terminalkeypad, a touch-screen, a microphone, an infrared sensor, a sonicranger, a computer port, a video camera, a digital camera, a GPSreceiver, a motion sensor, a radio frequency identification (RFID)receiver, a RF receiver, a thermometer, a pressure sensor, and a weightscale.

[0033] The term “output device” may refer to a device that is used tooutput information. An output device may communicate with or be part ofanother device (e.g. a user device, a third-party server, a controller,etc.). Some examples of output devices include: a cathode ray tube (CRT)monitor, liquid crystal display (LCD) screen, light emitting diode (LED)screen, a printer, an audio speaker, an infra-red transmitter, a radiotransmitter, etc..

[0034] The term “I/O device” may refer to any combination of inputand/or output devices.

[0035] The term “loss range” may refer to an upper loss threshold, alower loss threshold and the values between the thresholds. In someembodiments for example, a lower loss threshold may be a consolationprize threshold and a loss range may define the loss amounts thatqualify a player for a consolation prize tier.

[0036] The term “consolation prize threshold” may refer to a lossthreshold above which a player may qualify for a particular consolationprize or consolation prize tier. For example, a consolation prizethreshold may denote that $100.00 is the minimum amount a player mustlose in order to receive a consolation prize from the bronze consolationprize tier.

[0037] The term “consolation prize tier” may refer to one ore moreconsolation prizes that may be awarded to a player that sustains a losswithin a corresponding pre-defined loss range. For example, in someembodiments, a consolation prize hierarchy may contain bronze, silver,gold, and platinum tiers. In addition, for each consolation prize tier,there may be associated a loss range specified in dollar values. Forexample, the bronze tier may allow a player who has lost between $10 and$99 to receive a particular consolation prize. Or, the silver tier mayallow a player who has lost between $100 and $199 to receive a morevaluable consolation prize.

[0038] The term “consolation prize ticket” may refer to a receipt orvoucher (in some embodiments, much like a cashless gaming receipt) whichmay be printed from a gaming device and redeemed by a player for hisconsolation prize from a consolation prize redemption area, terminal,and/or redemption service provider. In some embodiments, a consolationprize ticket may be a pre-printed ticket or voucher which may be givento a player for losing a certain amount of money from a casino tablegame. In some embodiments, a consolation prize ticket may serve as aplayer's written guarantee that he will receive a consolation prize.

[0039] The term “consolation prize redemption area” may refer to alocation or website at which a player may redeem a consolation prizeticket and/or receive a consolation prize. A consolation prizeredemption area may be within a casino or in a third-party's facility.

[0040] The term “loss rate” may refer to a parameter used in someembodiments for determining the consolation prize tier from which aplayer may choose a consolation prize. In some embodiments, a loss ratemay be determined by dividing the total amount of money lost by a playerduring a gaming session by the total amount of time in the gamingsession.

B. System

[0041] Referring now to FIG. 1A, a system 100A according to someembodiments of the present invention includes a controller 102 that isin one or two-way communication with one or more gaming devices 104,third-party merchant terminals 106 and/or redemption terminals 108. Inoperation, the controller 102 may function under the control of a casinoor other entity that may also control the gaming devices 104. Forexample, the controller 102 may be a slot server in a casino's slotnetwork, a server in a network operated by a consortium of gamingindustry entities, or a server in an Internet service provider's onlinenetwork. In some embodiments, the controller 102, the gaming device 104,and/or the redemption terminal 106 may be one and the same.

[0042] Referring to FIG. 1B, an alternative system 100B according tosome embodiments of the present invention may further include one ormore third-party service provider servers 112. A third-party serviceprovider server 112 may also be in one or two-way communication with thecontroller 102. However, as shown in the embodiment depicted in FIG. 1B,the third-party service provider server 112 may be disposed between thecontroller 102 and the third-party merchant terminals 106 and/or theredemption terminals 108 and serve as a gateway. The various networknodes may communicate via the Internet 110 (or other communicationslink). In some embodiments, controller 102 may include multiple servers,each under the control of different entities, e.g. different casinos. Insuch an embodiment, the third-party service provider server 112 mayfunction as a service provider for the entities operating the pluralityof controllers and any practicable network topology may be employed.

[0043] The primary difference between the two alternative embodimentsdepicted in FIGS. 1A and 1B is that the embodiment of FIG. 1B includesthe third-party service provider server 112 which may be operable by anentity both distinct and physically remote from the entity operating thecontroller 102. In operation, the third-party service provider server112 may perform the methods of the present invention by sending signalsto the controller 102 relayed from the third-party merchant terminals106 and/or the redemption terminals 108. In such an embodiment, thethird-party service provider server 112 may function as a reseller ordistributor of information owned or controlled by the controller 102.For example, a customer acquisition service provider may operate athird-party service provider server 112 that communicates with acasino's slot server (functioning as a controller 102) to providethird-party merchants (via the third-party merchant terminals 106) withcontact information of casino players who have been qualified asinterested potential new customers. In the embodiment of FIG. 1A, thefunctions of the third-party service provider server 112 may beconsolidated into the controller 102.

[0044] An additional difference between the two embodiments depicted inFIGS. 1A and 1B relates to the physical topology of the system 100A,100B. In both of the embodiments, each node may securely communicatewith every other node in the system 100A, 100B via, for example, avirtual private network (VPN). Thus, all nodes may be logicallyconnected. However, the embodiment depicted in FIG. 1B allows thethird-party service provider server 112 to serve as a single gatewaybetween the nodes that will typically be operated by a casino and activeplayers and the other nodes in the system 100B, i.e. nodes that may beoperated by third-party merchants and people outside the casino.

[0045] In some embodiments, the third-party merchant terminals 106 mayeach be controlled by different merchants. The controller 102 may beoperated by a casino. If there is a third-party service provider server112, it may be operated by an unrelated entity that arranges for theoperators of the controller 102 to have access to products of thethird-party merchants for use as consolation prizes. Thus, in such anexample embodiment, the system of the present invention may involvemerchants (operating third-party merchant terminals 106), a consolationprize service agent (operating the third-party service provider server112), casinos (each operating one or more controllers 102), and players(operating gaming devices 102 and redemption terminals 108). In someembodiments, a casino may operate a combined controller/gamingdevice/redemption terminal directly and the system may only involve acasino and a player.

[0046] In both embodiments pictured in FIGS. 1A and 1B, communicationbetween each of the controllers 102, the gaming devices 104, theredemption terminals 108, third-party merchant terminals 106, and/or thethird-party service provider servers 112, may be direct and/or via anetwork such as the Internet 110.

[0047] Referring to both FIGS. 1A and 1B, each of the controller 102(and/or the third-party service provider servers 112), the gamingdevices 104, the redemption terminals 108, and/or the third-partymerchant terminals 106 may comprise computers, such as those based onthe Intel® Pentium® processor, that are adapted to communicate with eachother. Any number of third-party service provider servers 112, gamingdevices 104, redemption terminals 108, and/or third-party merchantterminals 106 may be in communication with the controller 102. Thecontroller 102 (and/or the third-party service provider servers 112),the gaming devices 104, the redemption terminals 108, and/or thethird-party merchant terminals 106 may each be physically proximate toeach other or geographically remote from each other. The controller 102(and/or the third-party service provider servers 112), the gamingdevices 104, the redemption terminals 108, and/or the third-partymerchant terminals 106 may each include input devices (not pictured) andoutput devices (not pictured).

[0048] As indicated above, communication between the controller 102(and/or the third-party service provider servers 112), the gamingdevices 104, the redemption terminals 108, and/or the third-partymerchant terminals 106, may be direct or indirect, such as over anInternet Protocol (IP) network such as the Internet 108, an intranet, oran extranet through a web site maintained on the controller 102 (and/orthe third-party service provider server 112) on a remote server or overan online data network including commercial online service providers,bulletin board systems, routers, gateways, and the like. In someembodiments, the nodes may communicate with the controller 102 overlocal area networks including Ethernet, Token Ring, and the like, radiofrequency communications, infrared communications, microwavecommunications, cable television systems, satellite links, Wide AreaNetworks (WAN), Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) networks, PublicSwitched Telephone Network (PSTN), other wireless networks, and thelike.

[0049] Those skilled in the art will understand that devices incommunication with each other need not be continually transmitting toeach other. On the contrary, such devices need only transmit to eachother as necessary, and may actually refrain from exchanging data mostof the time. For example, a device in communication with another devicevia the Internet 110 may not transmit data to the other device for weeksat a time. The nodes of the system 100A, 100B may not remain physicallycoupled to each other. For example, the gaming devices 104 may only beconnected to the system 100A, 100B when a service technician needs toupload a slot machine's daily gaming data to the controller 102.

[0050] The controller 102 (and/or the third-party service providerserver 112) may function as a “web server” that presents and/orgenerates web pages which are documents stored on Internet-connectedcomputers accessible via the World Wide Web using protocols such as,e.g., the hyper-text transfer protocol (“HTTP”). Such documentstypically include one or more hyper-text markup language (“HTML”) files,associated graphics, and script files. A Web server allows communicationwith the controller 102 in a manner known in the art. The gaming devices104, the redemption terminals 108, and/or the third-party merchantterminals 106 may include a Web browser, such as NAVIGATOR® published byNETSCAPE® to access HTML forms generated or maintained by or on behalfof the controller 102 (and/or the third-party service provider server112).

[0051] As indicated above, any or all of the controller 102 (and/or thethird-party service provider servers 112), the gaming devices 104, theredemption terminals 108, and/or the third-party merchant terminals 106may include, e.g., processor based cash registers, telephones,interactive voice response (IVR) systems such as the ML400-IVR® designedby MISSING LINK INTERACTIVE VOICE RESPONSE SYSTEMS, cellular/wirelessphones, vending machines, pagers, personal computers, portable types ofcomputers, such as a laptop computer, a wearable computer, a palm-topcomputer, a hand-held computer, and/or a Personal Digital Assistant(PDA). Further details of the controller 102 (and/or the third-partyservice provider server 112), the gaming devices 104, the redemptionterminals 108, and/or the third-party merchant terminals 106 areprovided below with respect to FIGS. 2 through 5.

[0052] As indicated above, in some embodiments of the invention thecontroller 102 (and/or the third-party service provider server 112) mayinclude gaming devices 104 and/or redemption terminals 108. Thecontroller 102 may communicate with players directly instead of throughthe gaming devices 104 and/or the redemption terminals 108. Although notpictured, the controller 102 (and/or the third-party service providerserver 112), the gaming devices 104, the redemption terminals 108,and/or the third-party merchant terminals 106 may also be incommunication with one or more consumer and/or merchant creditinstitutions to effect transactions and may do so directly or via asecure financial network such as the Fedwire network maintained by theUnited States Federal Reserve System, the Automated Clearing House(hereinafter “ACH”) Network, the Clearing House Interbank PaymentsSystem (hereinafter “CHIPS”), or the like.

[0053] In operation, a player may gamble using a gaming device 104. Thegaming device 104 may communicate the player's identity, wagers, andgaming device outcomes to the controller 102. The controller 102 maycompute the player's losses and determine a consolation prize to offerthe player. The controller 102 may communicate the consolation prize tothe gaming device 104 which may provide the player with a consolationprize ticket. The player may take the consolation prize ticket to aredemption terminal 106 that communicates the prize ticket informationto the third-party service provider server 112. The third-party serviceprovider server 112 may confirm the validity of the prize ticket andretrieve player information via communication with the controller 102and then instruction a merchant via communication with the third-partymerchant terminal 106 to ship a consolation prize to the player's homeaddress.

C. Devices

[0054]FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating details of an example ofthe controller 102 of FIGS. 1A and 1B (and/or third-party serviceprovider server 112 of FIG. 1B). The controller 102 is operative tomanage the system and execute the methods of the present invention. Thecontroller 102 may be implemented as one or more system controllers, oneor more dedicated hardware circuits, one or more appropriatelyprogrammed general purpose computers, or any other similar electronic,mechanical, electromechanical, and/or human operated device. Forexample, in FIG. 1B, the controller 102 is depicted as coupled to athird-party service provider server 112. In the embodiment of FIG. 1B,these two servers may provide the same functions as the controller 102alone in the embodiment of FIG. 1A.

[0055] The controller 102 (and/or third-party service provider server112) may include a central processing unit (CPU) 202, such as one ormore Intel® Pentium® processors. The CPU 202 may include or be coupledto one or more clocks or timers (not pictured), which may be useful fordetermining information relating to, for example, a length of a gamingsession, and one or more communications interfaces 218 through which theCPU 202 communicates with other devices such as the gaming devices 104,the redemption terminals 108, and/or the third-party merchant terminals106. The CPU 202 is also in communication with a data storage device204. The data storage device 204 includes an appropriate combination ofmagnetic, optical and/or semiconductor memory, and may include, forexample, additional processors, communication ports, Random AccessMemory (“RAM”), Read-Only Memory (“ROM”), a compact disc and/or a harddisk. The CPU 202 and the storage device 204 may each be, for example:(i) located entirely within a single computer or other computing device;or (ii) connected to each other by a remote communication medium, suchas a serial port cable, a LAN, a telephone line, radio frequencytransceiver, a fiber optic connection or the like. In some embodimentsfor example, the controller 102 may comprise one or more computers (orCPUs 202) that are connected to a remote server computer operative tomaintain databases, where the data storage device 204 is comprised ofthe combination of the remote server computer and the associateddatabases.

[0056] The data storage device 204 stores a program 206 for controllingthe CPU 202. The CPU 202 performs instructions of the program 206, andthereby operates in accordance with the present invention, andparticularly in accordance with the methods described in detail herein.The present invention may be embodied as a computer program developedusing an object oriented language that allows the modeling of complexsystems with modular objects to create abstractions that arerepresentative of real world, physical objects and theirinterrelationships. However, it would be understood by one of ordinaryskill in the art that the invention as described herein may beimplemented in many different ways using a wide range of programmingtechniques as well as general purpose hardware systems or dedicatedcontrollers. The program 206 may be stored in a compressed, uncompiledand/or encrypted format. The program 206 furthermore may include programelements that may be generally useful, such as an operating system, adatabase management system and “device drivers” for allowing the CPU 202to interface with computer peripheral devices. Appropriate generalpurpose program elements are known to those skilled in the art, and neednot be described in detail herein.

[0057] Further, the program 206 is operative to execute a number ofinvention-specific modules or subroutines including but not limited toone or more routines to upload, store, and organize player trackinginformation; one or more routines to compute a loss amount based oncoin-in and coin-out; one or more modules to determine a consolationprize based on a loss amount; one or more routines to offer consolationprizes; one or more modules to implement a server for hosting Web pages;one or more routines to generate consolation prize tickets; one or moreroutines to confirm consolation prize tickets; one or more routines toredeem consolation prize tickets; one or more routines to receive andstore information about a player; one or more routines to facilitate andcontrol communications between the controllers 102 (and/or thethird-party service provider servers 112), the gaming devices 104, theredemption terminals 108, and/or the third-party merchant terminals 106;and one or more routines to control databases or software objects thattrack information regarding players, consolation prize offers,merchants, gaming devices 104, and transactions. Examples of thefunctions of some of these routines and their operation are described indetail below in conjunction with the flowchart depicted in FIG. 10.

[0058] According to some embodiments of the present invention, theinstructions of the program 206 may be read into a main memory of theCPU 202 from another computer-readable medium, such from a ROM to a RAM.Execution of sequences of the instructions in the program 206 causes CPU202 to perform the process steps described herein. In alternativeembodiments, hard-wired circuitry or integrated circuits may be used inplace of, or in combination with, software instructions forimplementation of the processes of the present invention. Thus,embodiments of the present invention are not limited to any specificcombination of hardware, firmware, and/or software.

[0059] In addition to the program 206, the storage device 204 is alsooperative to store (i) a player database 208, (ii) an offer database210, (iii) a third-party merchant database 212, and (iv) a transactiondatabase 214. The databases 208, 210, 212, 214 are described in detailbelow and example structures are depicted with sample entries in theaccompanying figures. As will be understood by those skilled in the art,the schematic illustrations and accompanying descriptions of the sampledatabases presented herein are exemplary arrangements for storedrepresentations of information. Any number of other arrangements may beemployed besides those suggested by the tables shown. For example, eventhough four separate databases are illustrated, the invention could bepracticed effectively using one, two, three, five, six, or morefunctionally equivalent databases. Similarly, the illustrated entries ofthe databases represent exemplary information only; those skilled in theart will understand that the number and content of the entries may bedifferent from those illustrated herein. Further, despite the depictionof the databases as tables, an object based model could be used to storeand manipulate the data types of the present invention and likewise,object methods or behaviors may be used to implement the processes ofthe present invention. These processes are described below in detailwith respect to FIG. 10.

[0060] Turning to FIG. 3, a block diagram of an example gaming device104 is depicted. A gaming device 104 according to the present inventionmay include a CPU 302 coupled to a communications interface 308, a datastorage device 304 that may store a gaming device program 306 and gamingdata, a printer 310, a player input device 316, a player tracking cardreader 314, and a display screen 312. Although not pictured, a gamingdevice 104 may include other typical elements such as a coin-hopper anda bill validator. A gaming device program 306 may include one or moreroutines to facilitate and control communications and interaction withthe controller 102, routines to count coin-in and coin-out, and routinesto implement a user interface to facilitate gaming and communicationwith the player. As indicated above, a gaming device 104 may beimplemented by any number of devices such as, for example, an arcadegame, a point-of-sale terminal, a lottery terminal, a telephone, an IVRsystem, a cellular/wireless phone, a kiosk, a vending machine, a pager,a personal computer, a portable computer such as a laptop, a wearablecomputer, a palm-top computer, a hand-held computer, and/or a PDA.

[0061] Turning to FIG. 4, a block diagram of an example third-partymerchant terminal 106 is depicted. A third-party merchant terminal 106according to the present invention may include a CPU 402 coupled to acommunications interface 404, a data storage device (not pictured) thatmay store a merchant terminal program (not pictured), an input device(not pictured), and an output device (not pictured). A merchant terminalprogram may include one or more routines to facilitate and controlcommunications and interaction with the controller 102 as well as a userinterface to facilitate communications and interaction with a merchantoperator (e.g. an operating system, a Web browser, etc.).

[0062] In addition, a third-party merchant terminal 106 may includeadditional devices to support other functions. For example, athird-party merchant terminal 106 embodied in a point-of-sale terminalmay additionally include a system for tallying prices, receiving,counting, and dispensing cash as well as a printing device forgenerating a receipt. Further, many alternative input and output devicesmay be used in place of the device pictured in FIG. 4. Uses of theseoptional third-party merchant terminal 106 components are discussedbelow in conjunction with the description of the methods of the presentinvention.

[0063] Turning to FIG. 5, a block diagram of an example redemptionterminal 108 is depicted. A redemption terminal 108 according to thepresent invention may include a CPU 502 coupled to a communicationsinterface 504, a data storage device (not pictured) that may store aredemption terminal program (not pictured), an input device (notpictured), and an output device (not pictured). A redemption terminalprogram may include one or more routines to facilitate and controlcommunications and interaction with the controller 102 as well as a userinterface to facilitate communications and interaction with a player(e.g. an operating system, a Web browser, etc.).

[0064] In addition, a redemption terminal 108 may include additionaldevices to support other functions. For example, a redemption terminal108 embodied in an ATM may additionally include a system for receiving,counting, and dispensing cash as well as a printing device forgenerating a receipt and/or a security camera. In another example, aredemption terminal 108 embodied in a gaming device may additionallyinclude a system for generating and/or selling outcomes certified by agaming authority. Such systems include slot machines which includeconventional reel slot machines, video slot machines, video pokermachines, video keno machines, video blackjack machines, and othergaming machines. In yet another example, a redemption terminal 108embodied in a gasoline pump may additionally include a system forpumping, measuring, and managing the flow control of fuel. Further, manyalternative input and output devices may be used in place of the devicepictured in FIG. 5. Uses of these optional redemption terminal 108components are discussed below in conjunction with the description ofthe methods of the present invention.

D. Databases

[0065] As indicated above, it should be noted that although the exampleembodiment of FIG. 2 is illustrated to include four particular databasesstored in storage device 204, other database arrangements may be usedwhich would still be in keeping with the spirit and scope of the presentinvention. In other words, the present invention could be implementedusing any number of different database files or data structures, asopposed to the four depicted in FIG. 2. Further, the individual databasefiles could be stored on different servers (e.g. located on differentstorage devices in different geographic locations, such as on athird-party service provider server 112). Likewise, the program 206could also be located remotely from the storage device 204 and/or onanother server. As indicated above, the program 206 includesinstructions for retrieving, manipulating, and storing data in thedatabases 208, 210, 212, 214 as necessary to perform the methods of theinvention as described below.

[0066] 1. Player Database

[0067] Turning to FIG. 6, a tabular representation of an embodiment of aplayer database 208 according to some embodiments of the presentinvention is illustrated. This particular tabular representation of aplayer database 208 includes two sample records or entries which eachinclude information regarding a particular player. In some embodimentsof the invention, a player database 208 is used to track such things asplayer tracking information including financial, demographic,performance, and contact information. Those skilled in the art willunderstand that such a player database 208 may include any number ofentries.

[0068] The particular tabular representation of a player database 208depicted in FIG. 6 defines fifteen fields for each of the entries orrecords. The fields may include: (i) a player identifier field 602 thatmay store a representation uniquely identifying a player; (ii) a namefield 604 that may store a representation of the player's name; (iii) afinancial account identifier field 606 that may store a representationof, for example, the player's credit card number or bank account number;(iv) a demographic field 608 that may store a representation of adescription of demographic characteristics of the player; (v) a machineidentifier field 610 that may store a representation uniquelyidentifying the machine on which the player played; (vi) a sessiontheoretical win field 612 that may store a representation of theplayer's theoretical win amount for the current gaming session; (vii) ahistorical theoretical win field 614 that may store a representation ofthe player's theoretical win amount for all known gaming sessions;(viii) a win/loss field 616 that may store a representation of theamount of the player's winnings or losses during the current gamingsession; and (ix) a time played field 618 that may store arepresentation of the duration of the current gaming session. A playerdatabase 208 may also include (x) a street address field 620; (xi) atown field 622; (xii) a state field 624; (xiii) a zip code field 626;(xiv) a telephone number field 628; and (xv) an email address field 630,that store a representation of the player's contact information.

[0069] The example player database 208 depicted in FIG. 6 providesexample data to illustrate the meaning of the information stored in thisdatabase embodiment. Referring to the first entry in the player database208, player “P111123” is named “Sam Brown.” Sam Brown's credit cardnumber is “1111-1111-1111-1111” and he is “male, age 23.” Sam Brownplayed on gaming device “234M” for “3:24” (hours and minutes) and won“$50.” The casino had computed for him a session theoretical win of“$58” and a historical theoretical win of “$252.” Sam Brown lives at“183 Rock Place,” in “Park City,” “Nev.,” “95830.” His phone number is“418-555-1234” and his email address is sbrown@aol.com.

[0070] Referring to the second entry in the player database 208, player“P222234” is named “Linda Jones.” Linda Jones's credit card number is“2222-2222-2222-2222” and she is “female, age 47.” Linda Jones played ongaming device “532M” for “1:22” (hour and minutes) and lost “$100.” Thecasino had computed for her a session theoretical win of “$63” and ahistorical theoretical win of “$357.” Linda Jones lives at “34 BeatStreet,” in “Juniper,” “N.J.,” “11364.” Her phone number is“445-987-6543” and her email address is “lones@hotmail.com.”

[0071] 2. Offer Database

[0072] Turning to FIG. 7, a tabular representation of an embodiment ofan offer database 210 according to some embodiments of the presentinvention is illustrated. This particular tabular representation of anoffer database 210 includes three sample records or entries which eachinclude information regarding a particular consolation prize offer. Insome embodiments of the invention, an offer database 210 is used totrack consolation prize information such as the details of the offer,the value of the offer, and revenue from player acceptance of theconsolation prize offer. Those skilled in the art will understand thatsuch an offer database 210 may include any number of entries.

[0073] The particular tabular representation of an offer database 210depicted in FIG. 7 defines eleven fields for each of the entries orrecords. The fields may include: (i) an offer identifier field 702 thatmay store a representation uniquely identifying a particular consolationprize offer; (ii) a merchant identifier field 704 that may store arepresentation uniquely identifying the merchant providing theconsolation prize; (iii) an offer name field 706 that may store arepresentation of the name of consolation prize offer; (iv) athird-party merchant field 708 that may store a representation of thename of a producer of the consolation prize; (v) an offer duration field710 that may store a representation of the length of time ansubscription-type consolation prize will be provided; (vi) a full retailvalue field 712 that may store a representation of the actual retailvalue of the consolation prize; (vii) a quantity of offers made field714 that may store a representation of the number of times theconsolation prize offer has been offered; (viii) a payment to casino peroffer made field 716 that may store a representation of the amount ofrevenue the casino earns from the third-party merchant each time theconsolation prize offer is presented to a player; (ix) a payment tocasino per offer accepted field 718 that may store a representation ofthe amount of revenue the casino earns from the third-party merchanteach time the consolation prize offer is accepted by a player; (x) atier level field 720 that may store a representation of the consolationprize tier of the consolation prize offer; and (xi) a threshold field722 that may store a representation of a loss range required to qualifyfor the consolation prize tier level of the consolation prize offer.

[0074] The example offer database 210 of FIG. 7 provides example data tofurther illustrate the meaning of the information stored in thisdatabase embodiment. Referring to the example first entry, offer number“56839” from merchant number “M135468” is called “Magazine 1.” TheMagazine 1 consolation prize offer is a “3 month” subscription to amagazine by “ABC Publisher” and has a retail value of “$11.85.” Thisconsolation prize has been offered to “20” players, as a “bronze” levelconsolation prize, who have sustained a loss of “$1-$200.” Thecontroller 102 operator, in this example a casino, does not get anypayment from the merchant for offering or getting acceptances of thisprize.

[0075] Referring to the second example entry, offer number “47532” frommerchant number “M156321” is called “Phone Card.” The Phone Cardconsolation prize offer is “20 minutes” of telephone service by “NorthTelephone Company” and has a retail value of “$1.50.” This consolationprize has been offered to “65” players, as a “silver” level consolationprize, who have sustained a loss of “$201-$600.” The merchant is to paycontroller 102 operator, in this example a casino, “$0.80” per PhoneCard consolation prize offered to players. For every acceptance of thePhone Card offer, the casino is to receive “$1.25.” In some embodiments,the payment to the casino may not be on a flat rate basis. For example,the amount may be the difference between a player's losses and a totalbounty paid by the third-party merchant.

[0076] Referring to the third example entry, offer number “56840” frommerchant number “M135468” is called “Magazine 2.” The Magazine 2consolation prize offer is a “3 month” subscription to a magazine by“XYZ Publisher” and has a retail value of “$8.85.” This consolationprize has been offered to “32” players, as a “gold” level consolationprize, who have sustained a loss of more than “$601.” The merchant is topay controller 102 operator, in this example a casino, “$3.08” perMagazine 2 consolation prize accepted by a player. However, the casinodoes not receive any payment for offering the Magazine 2 consolationprize.

[0077] Note that the retail value may not be indicative of the tierlevel of a consolation prize relative to other consolation prizes. Alsonote that a tier level may not have an upper loss threshold. The examplealso illustrates that a single merchant may provide multiple differentconsolation prize offers.

[0078] 3. Third-Party Merchant Database

[0079] Turning to FIG. 8, a tabular representation of an embodiment of athird-party merchant database 212 according to some embodiments of thepresent invention is illustrated. This particular tabular representationof a third-party merchant database 212 includes two sample records orentries which each include information regarding a third-party merchant.In some embodiments of the invention, a third-party merchant database212 is used to track information about the merchant providingconsolation prizes, the amount earned by the controller 102 from themerchant, and other information. Those skilled in the art willunderstand that such a third-party merchant database 212 may include anynumber of entries.

[0080] The particular tabular representation of a third-party merchantdatabase 212 depicted in FIG. 8 defines six fields for each of theentries or records. The fields may include: (i) a merchant identifierfield 802 that may store a representation uniquely identifying themerchant; (ii) a merchant name field 804 that may store a representationof the merchant's name; (iii) a merchant address field 806 that maystore a representation of the merchant's address; (iv) a product namefield 808 that may store a representation of the merchant's productprovided as a consolation prize; (v) a type field 810 that may store arepresentation of a description of the type of product provided as aconsolation prize; and (vi) a total payment due from merchant field 812that may store a representation of the total amount of money themerchant owes the entity operating the controller 102 as a result of thecontroller awarding the merchant's product as a consolation prize toplayers.

[0081] The example third-party merchant database 212 of FIG. 8 providesexample data to further illustrate the meaning of the information storedin this database embodiment. Referring to the first sample entry,merchant number “M135468” is called “Magazine X” and is located in“Anyplace, USA.” Magazine X's product is called “Magazine” and it is a“subscription” type product. Based upon the total offers and acceptancesof Magazine X's product as a consolation prize, Magazine X owes thecontroller 102 operator “$49.28.”

[0082] Referring to the second sample entry, merchant number “M156321”is called “Phone Company Y” and is located in “Someplace, USA.” PhoneCompany Y's product is called “Phone Card” and it is a “card” typeproduct. Based upon the total offers and acceptances of Phone CompanyY's product as a consolation prize, Phone Company Y owes the controller102 operator “$133.25.”

[0083] 4. Transaction Database

[0084] Turning to FIG. 9, a tabular representation of an embodiment of atransaction database 214 according to some embodiments of the presentinvention is illustrated. This particular tabular representation of atransaction database 214 includes four sample records or entries whicheach include information regarding a particular consolation prize offertransaction. In some embodiments of the invention, a transactiondatabase 214 is used to track such things as the details of consolationprize offer transactions including identification and confirmationnumbers as well as time and date stamps. Those skilled in the art willunderstand that a transaction database 214 may include any number ofentries.

[0085] The particular tabular representation of a transaction database214 depicted in FIG. 9 defines seven fields for each of the entries orrecords. The fields may include: (i) a transaction identifier field 902that may store a representation uniquely identifying at least oneconsolation prize offer transaction; (ii) an offer identifier field 904that may store a representation uniquely identifying at least oneconsolation prize offer; (iii) a player tracking number field 906 thatmay store a representation uniquely identifying at least one player;(iv) a time field 908 that may store a representation of a time of day atransaction occurred; (v) a date field 910 that may store arepresentation of a date a transaction occurred; (vi) a playerconfirmation number field 912 that may store a representation uniquelyidentifying the transaction for use by the player in redeeming aconsolation prize ticket; and (vii) a casino confirmation number field914 that may store a representation uniquely identifying the transactionfor use by the casino in billing third-party merchants for acceptedconsolation prize offers, for example.

[0086] The example transaction database 214 of FIG. 9 provides exampledata to further illustrate the meaning of the information stored in thisdatabase embodiment. Referring to the first sample data entry,transaction number “T1233456” involved consolation prize offer number“56839” to player number “P11123.” The offer was accepted at “3:24 PM”on “Apr. 4, 2001.” The player received confirmation number “1233456” andthe controller 102 operator, in this example, a casino, recorded“412563” as a confirmation number for use with the third-party merchantsupplying the consolation prize.

[0087] Referring to the second sample data entry, transaction number“T654321” involved consolation prize offer number “47532” to playernumber “P22234.” The offer was accepted at “1:26 AM” on “May 6, 2001.”The player received confirmation number “654321” and the casino recorded“965874” as a confirmation number for use with the third-party merchant.

[0088] Referring to the third sample data entry, transaction number“T789654” involved consolation prize offer number “56840” to playernumber “P33345.” The offer was accepted at “12:01 PM” on “Mar. 3, 2002.”The player received confirmation number “789455” and the casino recorded“764923” as a confirmation number for use with the third-party merchant.

[0089] Referring to the fourth sample data entry, transaction number“T345678” involved consolation prize offer number “67943” to playernumber “P44456.” The offer was accepted at “4:44 AM” on “Jan. 1, 2001.”The player received confirmation number “456789” and the controller 102operator, in this example, a casino, recorded “478537” as a confirmationnumber for use with the third-party merchant.

E. Process Descriptions

[0090] The system discussed above, including the hardware components andthe databases, are useful to perform the methods of the invention.However, it should be understood that not all of the above describedcomponents and databases are necessary to perform any of the presentinvention's methods. In fact, in some embodiments, none of the abovedescribed system is required to practice the invention's methods. Thesystem described above is an example of a system that would be useful inpracticing the invention's methods. For example, the player database 208described above is useful for tracking users, but it is not absolutelynecessary to have such a database in order to perform the methods of theinvention. In other words, the methods described below may be practicedusing a conventional player/customer list. Likewise, in embodiments inwhich a casino provides all consolation prizes, a third-party merchantdatabase 212 may not be necessary or useful.

[0091] Referring to FIG. 10, a flow chart is depicted that representssome embodiments of the present invention that may be performed by thecontroller 102 (FIGS. 1A and 1B), an external third-party, and/or anintegrated third-party entity/device such as a third-party serviceprovider server 112. It must be understood that the particulararrangement of elements in the flow chart of FIG. 10, as well as theorder of example steps of various methods discussed herein, is not meantto imply a fixed order, sequence, and/or timing to the steps;embodiments of the present invention may be practiced in any order,sequence, and/or timing that is practicable.

[0092] In general terms and referring to FIG. 10, the method steps of anembodiment of the present invention may be summarized as follows. InStep S1, the system 100A, 100B receives a player identifier. In Step S2,gaming device 104 coin-in and coin-out amounts are tracked. In Step S3,the system 100A, 100B receives an indication that the player hascompleted a gaming session. In Step S4, the system 100A, 100B determinesa loss amount. In Step S5, a determination is made whether the player'sloss amount qualifies for a consolation prize: if so, the processproceeds to Step S6 where the system 100A, 100B determines a consolationprize offer based upon the loss amount and then in Step S7, offers theplayer the consolation prize. If in Step S5, the loss amount is lessthan the lowest loss range associated with a consolation prize, theprocess terminates.

[0093] In the subsections that follow, each of these seven steps willnow be discussed in greater detail. Note that not all seven of thesesteps are required to perform the method of the present invention andthat additional and/or alternative steps are also discussed below. Alsonote that the above general steps represent features of only some of theembodiments of the present invention and that they may be combinedand/or subdivided in any number of different ways so that the methodincludes more or less actual steps. For example, in some embodimentsmany additional steps may be added to update and maintain the databasesdescribed above, but as indicated, it is not necessary to use the abovedescribed databases in all embodiments of the invention. In other words,the methods of the present invention may contain any number of stepsthat are practicable to implement the processes described herein. Themethods of the present invention are now discussed in detail.

[0094] Step S1: Receive A Player Identifier

[0095] In some embodiments of the present invention, a player mayidentify himself to the system 100A, 100B. This allows the presentinvention to be applied to a single gaming session played on differentgaming devices 104, a discontinuous gaming session, shipping consolationprizes to a player's home, targeted consolation prize offers, andnumerous other relationship-type benefits for players, casinos, andthird-party merchants. However, in other embodiments of the presentinvention, a consolation prize may be awarded for example, based upon ananonymous player's losses at a single gaming device 104 during a singlecontinuous gaming session. Thus, in some embodiments, players may not berequired to identify themselves. A gaming session begins once a playerstarts to play, for example, upon the gaming device receiving the firstcoin-in of a wager. In some embodiments of the present invention, aplayer may sit down at a gaming device 104 and enter his player trackingcard into the player tracking card reader 314. Next, the player maydeposit bills into the gaming device's bill validator and proceed toplay the gaming device 104. The player tracking card information may beused to populate a player database 208 or an identification number on aplayer tracking card may be used to access player information in apre-existing player database 208.

[0096] Step S2: Track Coin-in And Coin-Out Amounts

[0097] While playing the gaming device 104, the gaming device 104 mayrecord coin-in and coin-out amounts to keep a running tabulation of aplayer's current loss amount or to later determine a player's final lossamount. For example, all coin-in (the number of coins/credits wagered bythe player) and coin-out (the number of coins/credits paid out by thegaming device 104) may be tracked, with the difference representing theplayer's win or loss. Such wins and losses may be recorded by the gamingdevice 104 and/or communicated to the controller 102 (to be stored, forexample, in the player database 208). In some embodiments the gamingdevice 104 may display the player's current loss amount, an indicationof one or more consolation prizes for which the loss amount qualifies,and/or a consolation prize tier for which the current loss amountqualifies. In some embodiments, the player's loss amount may becalculated based upon other factors in addition to or alternatively fromthe difference between coin-in and coin-out. For example, a losscalculation may include parameters such as standard deviation of theplayer's payouts over time to give more of a consolation prize andaccount for the emotional stress of large or sudden losses. In suchembodiments, additional data may be tracked to facilitate suchcalculations.

[0098] Step S3: Receive An Indication That A Gambling Session isComplete

[0099] After the player has lost, for example, $112.00, the player maydetermine that he does not want to risk losing any additional money andhe may decide to stop playing. The player may indicate to the gamingdevice 104 (and the system 100A, 100B) that he would like to stopplaying by pressing a cash-out button on the gaming device 104. At thatpoint, a final loss amount may be determined by gaming devices' CPU 302comparing the total amount of coin-in with the total amount of coin-outand/or by another method.

[0100] In some embodiments, the gaming device 104 may determine that aplayer is finished playing based upon a pause in playing. For example, agaming device 104 may ask the player (via a prompt on the display screen312) if he is finished playing if the gaming device determines that theplayer has not made a handle pull within the past thirty seconds. Theplayer input device 316 may be used to allow the player to respond tothe gaming device's inquiry. In some embodiments, gaming devices 104 maybe equipped with sensors that detect that a player is beginning to moveaway from the gaming device. In some embodiments, casino personnel mayprovide the indication to the system 100A, 100B that the gamblingsession is complete. Many other methods and devices may be employed toindicate to the system 100A, 100B that the gambling session is complete.

[0101] Step S4: Determine a Loss Amount

[0102] In some embodiments, the controller 102 may record and determinea player's loss amount. For example, for every losing combination thatthe player experiences, an outcome indicator may transmit a losingsignal to the gaming devices' CPU 302. Conversely, for every winningcombination that the player experiences, the outcome indicator maytransmit a winning signal to the gaming devices' CPU 302. Afterreceiving the gaming device's loss and win signals, the CPU 302 maytransmit the losing and/or winning signals to the controller 102. Uponreceiving the CPU's losing and/or winning signals, the controller 102may record and store the number of losing and winning signals within theplayer database 208. For example, after a player sustains a loss of$100.00, the player database 208 may have recorded that the player hashad 200 winning outcomes and 600 losing outcomes. After losing this$100, the player may decide to stop playing. The player may indicate tothe gaming device 104 that he would like to stop playing by pressing acash-out button. At that point, a final loss amount for the session maybe determined by the controller 102 accessing the player database 208and compare the total amount of losses with the total amount of wins.

[0103] Step S5: Determine If The Loss Amount Qualifies For A ConsolationPrize

[0104] The system 100A, 100B may next compare the loss amount against aprize qualification threshold. If the loss does not exceed the prizequalification threshold, the process terminates without awarding aconsolation prize in some embodiments. Otherwise, the process mayproceed to determine an appropriate prize.

[0105] In some embodiments, it may be desirable to only provide aconsolation prize to players with a loss amount greater than a definedminimum threshold. In some embodiments, a casino may want to provideconsolation prizes no matter how small a player's loss amount may be. Insome embodiments, certain players maybe be identified to be offered aconsolation prize only when their losses exceed a threshold specific tothem. Such an embodiment may be used to prevent a player from exploitingthe system by receiving more consolation prizes than the casino intends.Many other rules may be employed in determining if a loss amountqualifies a player for a consolation prize.

[0106] Step S6: Determine A Prize Based Upon the Loss Amount

[0107] In some embodiments, consolation prizes may be awarded baseddirectly upon the player's loss amount. For example, a casino mayprovide a player with a coupon with a retail value equal to the player'sloss amount. In some embodiments, the consolation prize may becalculated from the loss amount. For example, a gaming device 104 mayimmediately provide a player with five percent of his loss amount if heagrees to continue playing.

[0108] In some embodiments, the system 100A, 100B may determine whetherthe loss amount falls within a predetermined loss range and if so, basethe consolation prize on the loss range. Several loss ranges may bedefined, each having one or more consolation prizes associated withthem. For example, a set of loss ranges may be defined as follows: if aplayer loses between $1 and $200, then his loss is in loss range 1, ifthe player loses between $200 and $600, then his loss is in loss range2, if the player loses between $600 and $1000, then his loss is in lossrange 3, and if the player loses more that $1000, then his loss is inloss range 4. Loss ranges may be directly associated with particularconsolation prizes or, in some embodiments, a loss range may beassociated with a consolation prize tier. For example, if a player losesbetween $1 and $200 (loss range 1 of the above example) he may earn aconsolation prize from the bronze tier. If a player loses between $200and $600 (loss range 2 of the above example), the player may earn aconsolation prize from the silver tier. If a player loses between $600and $1,000 (loss range 3 of the above example), the player may qualifyfor the gold tier. Finally, if a player loses anything over $1,000.00(loss range 4 of the above example), he may be automatically qualify fora platinum tier consolation prize. Clearly any number of different lossranges, tier structures, and tier names may be used. The determinationof for which tier a loss amount qualifies and within which loss range atoss amount falls may be performed on any of the controller 102 (and/orthe third-party service provider servers 112), the gaming devices 104,the redemption terminals 108, and/or the third-party merchant terminals106.

[0109] In conjunction with the various consolation prize tiers, theremay exist various associated consolation prizes. In some embodiments ofthe present invention, each consolation prize tier may be associatedwith a number of different consolation prizes. In addition, eachconsolation prize tier may contain increasingly higher value consolationprizes. For example, the bronze tier may contain a number of different“minute denomination” variations for a pre-paid phone card. The silvertier may contain a number of three-month magazine subscriptions fromvarious publishers. The gold tier may contain a one-month subscriptionto a number of different local telephone company services. Finally, theplatinum tier may contain a number of different one-month cable and/orinternet service subscriptions. As indicated above, any number ofconsolation prizes may be associated with any number of consolationprize tiers and is not limited to the examples which have been provided.Examples of the consolation prize tiers and their associated consolationprizes may be presented to a player as follows: Bronze 20 Minute 30Minute 10 Minute 15 Minute Domestic Pre-Paid International InternationalPre- Pre-Paid Phone Card Pre-Paid Paid Phone Card Phone Card Phone CardSilver Three-Month Three-Month Three-Month Three-Month Magazine MagazineMagazine Magazine Subscription Subscription Subscription SubscriptionGold Three-Month Three-Month Three-Month Three-Month Caller ID VoiceMail Three-Way Conference Call Subscription Subscription CallingSubscription Subscription Platinum One-Month One-Month One-MonthOne-Month Internet Cable Direct TV Digital Television Service TelevisionService Service Subscription Service Subscription SubscriptionSubscription

[0110] As described, a number of different consolation prizes may beassociated with each consolation tier. Thus, a player whose total lossamount falls within the loss range associated with the bronze tier maybe presented with a choice of one of the different pre-paid phone cards.In another example, when a player's total loss amount falls within theloss range associated with the platinum tier, he may choose from one ofthe different internet and/or cable television service subscriptions.Any number of different consolation prizes may be offered and possibleprizes are not limited to the above examples. It may also be noted thateither a casino or a service provider functioning as a consolation prizedistributor may associate a consolation tier with a consolation prize.In some embodiments, available consolation prizes may be associated withparticular values. For example, a three-month magazine subscription mayhave a retail value of $3.95 while a three-month internet servicesubscription may have a retail value of $69.00 ($23.00×3). These valuesmay be assigned to help track the contributions of a third-partymerchant and the benefits provided to a player.

[0111] Because new customers may have significant long term economicvalue to a company, merchants may be willing to pay a casino acommission for each consolation prize accepted by the player. Forexample, a player accepting a free three-month trial subscription to asports magazine may generate significant profits for the publisher if hegoes on to become a paid subscriber. For this reason, the publisher maybe willing to pay, for example, the casino $4.00 for each consolationprize offer accepted by a player. Further, in some embodiments, thepublisher may agree to pay the casino $10.00 for each customer thatbecome a paid subscriber after having accepting the free initial trialperiod. In some embodiments, a publisher may agree to pay $3.00 a casinoper year as long as the casino-generated customer continued thesubscription.

[0112] Step S7: Offer the Prize

[0113] In some embodiments, a gaming device 104 may provide a player whohas sustained a qualifying loss with a consolation prize ticket or anactual consolation prize immediately upon detecting that the player hascompleted a gaming session and calculating the loss amount. In someembodiments, a consolation prize ticket may be redeemed for aconsolation prize at any of the controller 102 (and/or the third-partyservice provider servers 112), the gaming devices 104, the redemptionterminals 108, and/or the third-party merchant terminals 106. In someembodiments, a casino may provide a consolation prize redemption areafor players to receive their consolation prizes.

[0114] In some embodiments, after a gaming device 104 has associated aloss threshold amount with an appropriate consolation prize tier andassociated consolation prizes, the gaming device 104 may present theplayer with the consolation prize offer. For example, the gamingdevice's CPU 302 may retrieve the player's consolation prize tier andassociated consolation prize offers from an offer database 210 andpresent the consolation prize offers to the player. In some embodiments,the gaming device 104 may transmit a request to the controller 102 toobtain the player's consolation prize tier and associated offers. Uponreceiving the gaming device's 104 request, the controller 102 mayretrieve the player's consolation prize tier and associated offers fromits databases and transmit the requested information to the gamingdevice 104. Next, the gaming device 104 may receive the requestedinformation from the controller 102 and proceed to present theconsolation prize tier and associated offers to the player.

[0115] In some embodiments, the gaming device 104 may present the playerwith the specific consolation prize tier for which his final loss amounthas qualified him. For example, referring back to a previous example, aplayer who has lost $100 may be presented with the silver consolationprize tier's magazine subscription offers. A tabular representation ofthe following consolation prize offer may appear on the gaming device104 display screen 312 as follows: Congratulations, you have qualifiedfor one of our Silver Tier Consolation Prizes. Please make youselection: Three-Month Three-Month Three-Month Three-Month Subscriptionto Subscription to Subscription to Subscription to ABC Magazine XYZMagazine PQR Magazine RST Magazine Press Here To Press Here To PressHere To Press Here To Accept Accept Accept Accept

[0116] In some embodiments the gaming device 104 may present theplayer's consolation prize tier and associated offers in such a mannerso as to attract attention to the player and gaming device 104. Forexample, the gaming device 104 may transmit a lighting signal to acentrally located ceiling spotlight to shine on the player. In addition,bells, whistles, confetti, laser lights, etc. may also direct attentionto the player and gaming device 104. Conversely, a player may have theoption to avoid any additional gaming device 104 directed attention. Forexample, prior to presenting the player with his consolation prize tierand associated offers, the player may press a button on the gamingdevice 104 which may indicate to the gaming device 104 that he would notlike to receive the additional fanfare.

[0117] After being presented with the silver consolation prize tier andassociated offers, the player, in some embodiments, may immediatelyindicate acceptance of one of the consolation prize offers. The numberof consolation prize offers which a player may accept may be determinedby either the casino or the participating third-party merchant. Forexample, in the case where a player wants to accept one consolationprize offer, he may press a button on the gaming device's 104 video orLCD screen which indicates his interest in accepting the offer. In someembodiments, the indication of acceptance may include pressing a buttonon another part of the gaming device such as an input/output button, ora spin button, or an accept button, etc. After pressing an accept buttonon the gaming device's display screen 312, the gaming device may presentthe player with a personal information page. At this point, the playermay be prompted to enter his personal information into the gaming device104. For example, the gaming device 104 may request that the playerenter his name, mailing address, telephone number, email address,gender, age, additional magazine preferences and credit card number. Insome embodiments, the player's information including his mailing addressand credit card number may be obtained by the system from a playtracking card or from the player database 208. This information may beused to send the player his consolation prize.

[0118] In some embodiments, once the gaming device 104 has received theplayer's applicable information, it may transmit the player'sinformation to the controller 102 where it may be recorded and stored.In some embodiments, the player's consolation prize acceptanceinformation may be stored in the transaction database 214. After thecontroller 102 has recorded and stored the player's applicableinformation, the controller 102 may retrieve a confirmation number fromthe transaction database 214 and transmit the consolation prize offername and confirmation number to the gaming device 104. Next, the gamingdevice 104 may receive the player's consolation prize offer name andconfirmation number from the controller 102 and, in some embodiments,display the consolation prize offer name and confirmation number on thegaming device's 104 display screen 312. In some embodiments, afterrecording and storing the player's applicable information, thecontroller 102 may transmit an indication to the controller 102 to querythe player as to whether he would like to receive his consolation prizeoffer name and confirmation number by email. In some embodiments, theplayer may indicate to the gaming device 104 that he would like to havehis consolation prize offer name and confirmation number sent to hisemail address. At that point, the gaming device 104 may transmit theplayer's indication to the controller 102. Next, the controller 102 mayreceive the player's acceptance, retrieve the player's email addressfrom the player database 208, and transmit the player's consolationprize offer name and confirmation number to the player's email address.

[0119] The above described embodiment may allow the creation of a directcommunications link between the casino and the player which may be usedfor additional marketing purposes. Using the player's postal address,email address, etc., the casino may offer the player additional offersand promotions in an efficient and cost effective manner. In someembodiments, should the player prefer not to have his consolation prizeoffer name and confirmation number sent to his email address, he mayhave them printed from the gaming device's 104 printer 310. For example,after indicating to the gaming device 104 that he would not like to havehis consolation prize offer name and confirmation number emailed to hisemail address, the gaming device 104 may print the player's consolationprize offer name and confirmation number and any other information whichmay be applicable onto a ticket. In some embodiments, the offerinformation may be printed onto a cashless gaming receipt. In someembodiments, the printed ticket may be lasered onto a roll of stockpaper which may be stored within the gaming device 104. In someembodiments, the player's consolation prize ticket may serve as theplayer's receipt for his accepted consolation prize offer. The playermay use his consolation prize ticket as a receipt if for any reason hehas a problem receiving his expected consolation prize. In someembodiments, after the player has received his consolation prize ticketfrom the printer he may redeem it at an in-house casino consolationprize cage.

[0120] In some embodiments, after either the gaming device 104 orcontroller 102 has stored the player's acceptance of a consolationprize, the consolation prize offer name, and confirmation number, thecontroller 102 may transmit the player's information to a participatingthird-party merchant via the third-party merchant terminal 106. Forexample, referring back to a previous example, a player who has selecteda three-month magazine subscription consolation prize may haveparticular information which a participating third-party merchant mayneed to process the order. For example, a participating third-partymerchant may need the player's name, address, telephone number, emailaddress, and credit card number to deliver the consolation prize. Theplayer's credit card number may be used by the third-party merchant tocontinue the magazine subscription beyond a free-trial period if theplayer so chooses. For example, after a player has reached the end ofhis three-month trial subscription, additional subscription time may beautomatically billed to the player's credit card unless he indicatesthat he desires otherwise. The magazine publisher may charge theplayer's credit card for the appropriate amount of the subscription andcontinue sending the player his magazine without interruption.

[0121] In some embodiments, a dedicated service provider may serve toconsolidate all subscription related consolation prize transactions.Several casinos may feed accepted offers to this service provider, andthe service provider may work with publishers to fulfill thesubscriptions. In this embodiment, the service provider may managepayments to the casinos and transferring subscription information to thepublishers.

[0122] In some embodiments, either the gaming device 104 or thecontroller 102 may retrieve the player's information from the applicabledatabases and create an entry in the transaction database 214. Forexample, the controller 102 may enter the offer number, player trackingnumber, time, date, and player's confirmation number into thetransaction database 214. The controller 102 may transmit theinformation to the third-party merchant using the information in thethird-party merchant database 212. In the above example, the third-partymerchant may be a magazine publisher. After receiving the controller's102 information, the third-party merchant may transmit a confirmationnumber back to the controller 102 which indicates that the participatingthird-party merchant has received the casino's transmission and isprocessing the order. The controller 102 may store the third-partymerchant's confirmation number in the transaction database 214.

F. EXAMPLE ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

[0123] The following very specific examples are provided to illustrateparticular embodiments of the present invention, particularly from theperspective of potential users of the system 100A, 100B includingplayers and potential controller 102 operators such as casinos.

Example 1

[0124] A player may sit down at a slot machine and enter his playertracking card into the player tracking card reader. Next, the player maydeposit a $100.00 bill into the slot machine's bill validator andproceed to play the slot machine. After the player has wagered and lostthis $100.00, the slot machine may transmit an indication to the playerthat he has earned a consolation prize. At that point, the slot machinemay present the player with five different consolation prize offers fromwhich he may choose. After choosing one of the consolation prize offers,such as a three-month magazine subscription or a three-month internetservice subscription, the player may enter his personal information andcredit card number into the slot machine. Next, the slot machine maypresent the player with a confirmation number that representsconfirmation to the player that he may expect to receive his consolationprize in the mail.

Example 2

[0125] A player may sit down at a slot machine and enter his playertracking card into the player tracking card reader. Next, the player maydeposit a $10.00 bill into the slot machine's bill validator. At thatpoint, the slot machine may receive the player's $10.00 bill and suggestthat the player deposit another $10.00 into the slot machine byindicating to the player that the additional $10.00 will allow him toqualify to receive a consolation prize should he wager and lose all ofthe money. Next, the player deposits the additional $10.00 into the slotmachine and proceeds to play the game. After losing all $20.00, the slotmachine may present the player with a choice of consolation prize offerssuch as a free three-month magazine subscription or a $20.00 discountoff the purchase of a hotel room stay. At that point, the player maychoose a particular magazine subscription offer and proceed to input hispersonal information and credit card number into the slot machine.Finally, the slot machine may present the player with a confirmationnumber that represents confirmation to the player that he may expect toreceive his three-month magazine subscription in the mail.

Example 3

[0126] A player begins a gambling session by inserting a $100 bill intothe bill validator. After losing $73, the player elects to cash-out hisremaining $27. As his coins are dispensed by the hopper of the slotmachine, a printer on the slot machine prints a voucher for the playerthat entitles him to a $73 rebate on his next purchase of a Ford® truck.

G. Additional Embodiments of the Invention

[0127] The following are example alternative variations which illustrateadditional embodiments of the present invention. It should be understoodthat the particular variations described in this section may be combinedwith the different embodiments, or portions thereof, described above inany manner that is practicable. These examples do not constitute adefinition or itemization of all possible embodiments, and those skilledin the art will understand that the present invention is applicable tomany other embodiments. Further, although the following examples arebriefly described for clarity, those skilled in the art will understandhow to make any changes, if necessary, to the above-described apparatusand methods to accommodate these and other embodiments and applications.

[0128] In some embodiments, a player may earn the right to purchase aparticular product at a significant discount based on the total amountthat the player has lost. For example, a player who has lost at least$100 may be eligible to purchase a $300 television for $200. Afterwagering and losing his $100, the player may decide to stop playing andpress the cash out button. At that point, the player may be presentedwith the option to purchase the television. The player may choose topurchase the television by pressing the accept button on the gamingdevice 104. In response, the gaming device 104 may present a purchaseinformation page for the player for the player to complete. Afterentering his name, address, credit card number, and any other applicableinformation, the gaming device 104 may transmit the information to thecontroller 102 where it may be recorded and stored. The controller 102may then transmit a confirmation number to the gaming device 104 whichmay be presented to the player. The controller 102 may also transmitredemption information to the player. This information may include themerchant name and address where the player may pick up his television.The controller 102 may transmit the casino's request to purchase atelevision to a third-party merchant where it may be received andprocessed. In some embodiments of the present invention, the player maysimply receive a coupon for a discount on a future television purchase,rather than committing to the purchase while at the gaming device 104.

[0129] In some embodiments, a consolation prize purchase offer orconsolation prize offer may automatically appear on a player's gamingdevice 104 display screen 312. For example, there may existpredetermined triggers, such as losing a certain dollar amount orplaying despite having mostly losing outcomes for a particular period oftime, which may cause the presentation of a consolation prize purchaseoffer or consolation prize offer to appear. Thus, the player may receiveconsolation prize offers at any time during his gaming device 104 play.

[0130] In some embodiments, the casino may offer the player aconsolation prize of an interest free loan for period of time. In someembodiments, a casino may offer the player a consolation prize thatincludes a hotel room upgrade.

[0131] In some embodiments, the third-party merchants may pay the casinoa fee for every consolation prize given away. For example, a telephonecompany may pay a casino a fee for every three-month trial serviceperiod given away. The third-party merchant may be willing to pay thecasino a fee in anticipation of a dramatic increase in new customersthat the third-party merchant may receive.

[0132] In some embodiments, a casino may implement procedures to preventa player from “gaming” the consolation prize offer system. Gaming theconsolation prize offer system may include attempting to obtain moreconsolation prizes than are intended by the casino. In some embodiments,a player may be required to provide a credit card number every time heindicates that he is willing to accept a consolation prize. The casinomay impose, for example, a five consolation prize limit and enforce thelimit by charging the credit card of any player who exceeds the limitfor the full retail value of the consolation prizes accepted in excessof the limit. Requiring a credit card number may filter out people whoare not seriously interested in the consolation prizes. Additionally, inthe case of trial subscription-type consolation prizes, providing acredit card number to a third-party merchant may facilitate conversionof free trial customers into paid subscribers through an automatedsubscription continuation program.

[0133] In some embodiments, a player may be required to provide a playertracking card in order to receive a consolation prize. For example, aplayer may be required to insert his player tracking card into theplayer tracking card reader 314 at some point while he is playing agaming device 104 in order for the casino to associate the consolationprize offer with his player tracking card number. In addition, thecasino will be able to track how many consolation prizes that the playerhas been offered and has received.

[0134] In some embodiments, consolation prize offers may be restrictedto be only offered to hotel guests, high rollers, nickel slot players,players with children, players with an income over a threshold amount,and/or players with an out-of-state ID. In other words, the consolationprizes may not be offered to any player or category of player the casinodetermines should not receive such prizes. As indicated above, one waythis may be achieved is by setting a very high qualifying loss amountthreshold for individual players or categories of players.

[0135] In some embodiments, a player may be required to take hisconsolation prize ticket to the consolation prize redemption area toreceive his consolation prize. For example, after providing a playerwith a consolation prize ticket, the gaming device 104 may instruct theplayer to go to the consolation prize redemption area to receive hisprize. This may allow a casino attendant to recognize when a player isattempting to improperly redeem multiple consolation prizes ticket. Inaddition, a casino attendant stationed at a consolation prize redemptionarea may also be able to console a player who she knows has sustainedlosses. Such an attendant may be able to provide a personal touch inhelping a player deal with frustrating feelings and also provide specialconsolation prizes based on both the player's losses and the attendant'sperception of the player's frustration level. In some embodiments, aconsolation prize redemption area may be provided that is designed tosoothe and reassure losing players. Special lighting, music, anddecorating may be employed to create such an atmosphere.

[0136] In some embodiments, a casino may intend to give away as manyconsolation prize offers as possible. This may be the case, for example,when a casino receives revenue from third-party merchants for each offerand/or acceptance of a consolation prize offer. To facilitate givingaway as many consolation prizes as possible, a casino may rely upon aplayer tracking system and/or the use of a transaction database 214 inconjunction with storing player information in a player database 208.

[0137] In some embodiments, a loss amount may be determined consideringthe amount of time that a player has played a gaming device 104. Forexample, in addition to recording and storing the player's actual lossamount, the gaming device 104 may also record and store the total amountof time that a player has played a particular machine. After a playerhas inserted his player tracking card into the player tracking cardreader, the gaming device's 104 CPU may begin recording and storing thetotal time that the player has been playing the gaming device 104. Afterdeciding to stop playing, the player may press a cash out button. Atthat point, the player's loss rate may be determined by the gamingdevice's 104 CPU dividing the total amount of money that the player haslost by the total amount of time that the player has played the gamingdevice 104. To illustrate, an example equation may look as follows:

[0138] loss rate=(coin-in−coin-out)/total time of a play session

[0139] In some embodiments of the present invention, a player may berequired to both meet a loss amount threshold and a loss rate thresholdin order to qualify for a particular consolation prize or consolationprize tier. Alternatively, loss rate alone may be used to determinewhether a player qualifies for a particular consolation prize orconsolation prize tier.

[0140] In some embodiments, the gaming device 104 may require that theplayer establish an initial minimum credit balance on the gaming deviceto later be able to qualify for a particular consolation prize orconsolation prize tier. Further, the system 100A, 100B may imposeadditional restrictions on when a consolation prize or consolation prizetier is available to players. For example, certain consolation prizesmay only be awarded during off peak hours, only on specific gamingdevices in the casino, and/or only during a casino marketing promotionsuch as a special event party.

H. Conclusion

[0141] It is clear from the foregoing discussion that the disclosedsystems and methods to provide consolation prizes based upon lossesrepresents an improvement in the art of gaming marketing. While themethod and apparatus of the present invention has been described interms of its presently preferred and alternate embodiments, thoseskilled in the art will recognize that the present invention may bepracticed with modification and alteration within the spirit and scopeof the appended claims. The specifications and drawings are,accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictivesense.

[0142] Further, even though only certain embodiments have been describedin detail, those having ordinary skill in the art will certainlyappreciate and understand that many modifications, changes, andenhancements are possible without departing from the teachings thereof.All such modifications are intended to be encompassed within thefollowing claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: determining an amount lostby a player at a gaming device; determining a consolation prize basedupon the amount lost; and offering the consolation prize to the player.2. The method of claim 1 wherein determining an amount lost includesdetermining a tier based upon the amount lost.
 3. The method of claim 2wherein determining a consolation prize includes determining aconsolation prize based upon the tier.
 4. The method of claim 1 whereindetermining an amount lost includes determining an amount lost basedupon an initial amount.
 5. The method of claim 1 wherein determining anamount lost includes determining an amount lost based upon a cash-outamount.
 6. A method comprising: determining gambling losses; andproviding an award based upon the gambling losses.
 7. The method ofclaim 6 wherein determining gambling losses includes determining that anamount lost exceeds a threshold amount.
 8. The method of claim 6 whereindetermining gambling losses includes determining an average rate of lossand a period of play.
 9. The method of claim 6 wherein providing anaward based upon the gambling losses includes offering an award if thegambling losses exceed a threshold.
 10. The method of claim 6 whereinproviding an award based upon the gambling losses includes offering anaward if within a defined period of time the gambling losses exceed athreshold.
 11. The method of claim 6 wherein providing an award basedupon the gambling losses includes offering an award if a duration oflosing play exceeds a threshold.
 12. The method of claim 6 whereinproviding an award based upon the gambling losses includes offering anaward if a duration of play exceeds a threshold, and gambling lossesexceed gambling winnings during the duration of play.
 13. The method ofclaim 6 wherein providing an award based upon the gambling lossesincludes determining a tier based upon the gambling losses; and offeringan award based upon the teir.
 14. A method comprising: receiving aplayer identifier; receiving a wager amount; receiving an indicationthat a gambling session is complete; determining a cash-out amount;determining a loss amount based upon the wager amount and the cash-outamount; determining a prize based upon the loss amount; and offering theprize.
 15. The method of claim 14 wherein receiving a wager amountincludes determining the wager amount based upon receipt of a pluralityof wagers.
 16. The method of claim 14 wherein determining a prize basedupon the loss amount includes determining a tier based upon the lossamount; and determining a prize based upon the tier.
 17. The method ofclaim 14 further including: providing an indication of an amountrequired to be lost to qualify for a prize.
 18. The method of claim 14further including: providing an indication of an additional minimumamount required to be wagered to be able to qualify for a prize.
 19. Amethod comprising: determining a loss amount; and providing an offerbased upon the loss amount.
 20. The method of claim 19 wherein providingan offer based upon the loss amount includes providing a coupon to aplayer.
 21. The method of claim 20 wherein providing a coupon to aplayer includes providing a coupon having a face value based upon theloss amount.
 22. The method of claim 19 wherein providing an offer basedupon the loss amount includes providing a coupon for a third-partyproduct via a gaming device to a player.
 23. The method of claim 22wherein providing a coupon for a third-party product includes providinga coupon having a face value based upon the loss amount.
 24. The methodof claim 19 wherein providing an offer based upon the loss amountincludes providing a consolation prize ticket via a gaming device to aplayer.
 25. The method of claim 19 wherein providing an offer based uponthe loss amount includes providing a discount offer for a product. 26.The method of claim 19 wherein providing an offer based upon the lossamount includes providing a voucher for a free product.
 27. The methodof claim 19 wherein providing an offer based upon the loss amountincludes providing an amount of value to a player wherein the amount ofvalue is determined based upon the loss amount.
 28. A method comprising:receiving value from a player at a gaming device; determining a lossamount for the player; determining if the loss amount falls within aparticular loss range among a plurality of predefined loss ranges;associating the particular loss range with a consolation prize tier;presenting the player with a consolation prize offer based on theconsolation prize tier; receiving acceptance of the consolation prizeoffer from the player; and transferring the acceptance of theconsolation prize offer to a third-party merchant.
 29. The method ofclaim 28 wherein receiving value from a player at a gaming deviceincludes receiving a player tracking card.
 30. The method of claim 28wherein receiving value from a player at a gaming device includesreceiving a balance transfer from a casino account.
 31. The method ofclaim 28 wherein receiving value from a player at a gaming deviceincludes receiving funds via a bill validator.
 32. The method of claim28 wherein receiving value from a player at a gaming device includesreceiving tokens.
 33. The method of claim 28 wherein receiving valuefrom a player at a gaming device includes receiving a player identity.34. The method of claim 28 wherein receiving value from a player at agaming device includes receiving a cashless gaming receipt.
 35. Themethod of claim 28 wherein receiving value from a player at a gamingdevice includes receiving a financial account identifier.
 36. The methodof claim 28 wherein determining a loss amount for the player includestracking coin-in and coin-out.
 37. The method of claim 28 whereindetermining a loss amount for the player includes receiving anindication the player desires to cash-out.
 38. The method of claim 28wherein determining a loss amount for the player includes receiving acash-out signal.
 39. The method of claim 28 wherein determining a lossamount for the player includes detecting a pause in play greater than athreshold period of time.
 40. The method of claim 28 wherein determininga loss amount for the player includes subtracting a cash-out amount froma buy-in amount.
 41. The method of claim 28 wherein determining a lossamount for the player includes subtracting a coin-out amount from acoin-in amount.
 42. The method of claim 28 wherein determining a lossamount for the player includes summing loss amounts from all gamblingsessions within a time period.
 43. The method of claim 28 whereindetermining a loss amount for the player includes summing loss amountsfrom a continuous gambling session.
 44. The method of claim 28 whereindetermining a loss amount for the player includes summing loss amountsfrom gambling sessions during a stay at a hotel associated with thegaming device.
 45. The method of claim 28 wherein determining a lossamount for the player includes counting losing outcomes and winningoutcomes of the gaming device.
 46. The method of claim 28 whereindetermining if the loss amount falls within a particular loss rangeamong a plurality of predefined loss ranges includes specifying theplurality of predefined loss ranges.
 47. The method of claim 28 whereindetermining if the loss amount falls within a particular loss rangeamong a plurality of predefined loss ranges includes comparing the lossamount to the plurality of predefined loss ranges.
 48. The method ofclaim 28 wherein determining if the loss amount falls within aparticular loss range among a plurality of predefined loss rangesincludes specifying the plurality of predefined loss ranges based upon avalue of a loss range to a casino.
 49. The method of claim 28 whereindetermining if the loss amount falls within a particular loss rangeamong a plurality of predefined loss ranges includes specifying theplurality of predefined loss ranges based upon values of a set ofavailable consolation prizes.
 50. The method of claim 28 whereindetermining if the loss amount falls within a particular loss rangeamong a plurality of predefined loss ranges includes determining if theloss amount is greater than a lower bound of the particular loss rangeand less than an upper bound of the loss range.
 51. The method of claim28 wherein associating the particular loss range with a consolationprize tier includes determining a number of consolation prize tiersdesired.
 52. The method of claim 28 wherein associating the particularloss range with a consolation prize tier includes associating each oneof the plurality of loss ranges with a different consolation prize tier.53. The method of claim 28 wherein presenting the player with aconsolation prize offer based on the consolation prize tier includesassociating a consolation prize with a consolation prize tier.
 54. Themethod of claim 28 wherein presenting the player with a consolationprize offer based on the consolation prize tier includes associating aplurality of consolation prizes with a consolation prize tier.
 55. Themethod of claim 28 wherein presenting the player with a consolationprize offer based on the consolation prize tier includes associatingconsolation prizes of increasing value with increasingly higherconsolation prize tiers.
 56. The method of claim 28 wherein presentingthe player with a consolation prize offer based on the consolation prizetier includes offering a plurality of consolation prize offers to theplayer.
 57. The method of claim 28 wherein presenting the player with aconsolation prize offer based on the consolation prize tier includesdetermining a consolation prize offer having a cost approximately equalto the value of a loss amount associated with the consolation prizetier.
 58. The method of claim 28 wherein presenting the player with aconsolation prize offer based on the consolation prize tier includesdetermining a consolation prize having a value based upon durationwherein the duration of the consolation prize is related to theconsolation prize tier.
 59. The method of claim 28 wherein presentingthe player with a consolation prize offer based on the consolation prizetier includes drawing attention to the player.
 60. The method of claim28 wherein presenting the player with a consolation prize offer based onthe consolation prize tier includes requesting information from theplayer.
 61. The method of claim 28 wherein receiving acceptance of theconsolation prize offer from the player includes receiving a signal thatindicates the player has accepted the consolation prize offer.
 62. Themethod of claim 28 wherein receiving acceptance of the consolation prizeoffer from the player includes providing the player with a written copyof the consolation prize offer.
 63. The method of claim 28 whereinreceiving acceptance of the consolation prize offer from the playerincludes printing the consolation prize offer.
 64. The method of claim63 wherein printing the consolation prize offer includes printing theconsolation prize offer on a cashless gaming receipt.
 65. The method ofclaim 28 wherein receiving acceptance of the consolation prize offerfrom the player includes receiving payment from a third-party after aplayer redeems the consolation prize offer.
 66. The method of claim 28wherein receiving acceptance of the consolation prize offer from theplayer includes requiring information from the player.
 67. The method ofclaim 28 wherein transferring the acceptance of the consolation prizeoffer to a third-party merchant includes providing the player with acopy of the consolation prize offer that can be redeemed at thethird-party merchant.
 68. The method of claim 28 wherein transferringthe acceptance of the consolation prize offer to a third-party merchantincludes providing the player with a copy of the consolation prize offerthat can be redeemed at a casino.
 69. The method of claim 28 whereintransferring the acceptance of the consolation prize offer to athird-party merchant includes providing the player with a confirmationnumber.
 70. The method of 69 wherein providing the player with aconfirmation number includes providing the player with a confirmationnumber via email.
 71. The method of claim 28 wherein transferring theacceptance of the consolation prize offer to a third-party merchantincludes transmitting data regarding the player to the third-partymerchant.
 72. The method of claim 28 wherein transferring the acceptanceof the consolation prize offer to a third-party merchant includesproviding access to a database containing information regarding theconsolation prize offer.
 73. A system comprising: means for computing anamount lost by a player at a gaming device; means for selecting aconsolation prize based upon the amount lost; and means for presentingthe consolation prize to the player.
 74. A system comprising: a gamingdevice coupled to a controller operative to compute an amount lost by aplayer of the gaming device, select a consolation prize based upon theamount lost, and present a voucher for the consolation prize to theplayer.
 75. A coupon comprising: a material having printed theron aconfirmation number representative of a consolation prize offered to aplayer of a gaming device based upon an amount lost by the player whileplaying the gaming device.
 76. Computer readable media includingcomputer executable instructions operable to implement the method ofclaim
 1. 77. A gaming device comprising: a memory; and a processorcoupled to the memory and operative to calculate an amount lost by aplayer at the gaming device; identify a consolation prize based upon theamount lost; and provide a voucher for the consolation prize to theplayer.